History & Culture

From The Encyclopedia of Cleveland History by Case Western Reserve University on Filipino Americans.

Immigrants from the Philippines first settled on the West Coast, and only later began to relocate elsewhere. The Philippine-American community began its Greater Cleveland connection in 1920 when the first known Filipino, Martin Conde, moved to Cleveland from California. Attracted by the promise of plentiful employment opportunities, others were soon to follow. In 1927 Juan Reyes came to Cleveland and opened a boardinghouse for his fellow immigrants at E. 82nd St. and Wade Park Ave. Although the boardinghouse offered a comfortable starting point for some new arrivals, the Filipinos tended to settle near their jobs rather than in one geographical area of the city. And while scattered, the community did patronize the stores and restaurants of Cleveland’s Chinatown. By 1930 Cleveland’s Filipino-American population had grown to 30.